OtterBox Defender for Apple iPhone 5 Review

The OtterBox Defender is a protective case for SmartPhones. In this article, we look at the version for Apple iPhone 5.

The OtterBox Defender comes in three pieces (see photo below). The transparent piece on the right is the top plate. It is made out of plastic and transparent film. The middle plastic piece is backing for the phone. The rubber piece on the left encloses the plastic case for ultimate protection.

The following photo shows the three pieces with the white Apple iPhone 5c (on the right).

To install the iPhone into the case, you first place the iPhone into the transparent top panel. With the phone upside down, slip the bottom panel onto the iPhone back and into the top panel slots. The photo below shows the iPhone fully enclosed in the plastic case.

Next, it is time to install the rubber layer. There is no trick to it. Simply squeeze the case into the rubber surround. The rubber enclosure has closeable tabs for all of the ports. Close them all to provide dust and lint protection. Photo below shows the phone enclosed in the rubber bumper case.

The following photo shows the back of the rubber bumper case. It has an opening for the camera and an opening for the Apple logo. The white iPhone looks rather awkward in the black OtterBox Defender case.

OtterBox Defender comes with a plastic belt carrier (see photo below). The belt carrier provide hard protection to the screen. You can also install the iPhone into it in reverse so that the screen is on the outside.

The belt clip can be rotated 360 degrees for ultimate comfort. It can be locked open as a stand for the iPhone. But the stand only works in landscape mode.

The following photo shows the iPhone standing in landscape mode using the belt clip. There is a slight angle to it. However, the angle is too steep for normal seating position. So the stand is not too effective.

Rotating the OtterBox belt clip holster the other way allows the iPhone to stand vertically (shown in the photo below). It could come in handy in some situations, but not many.